City in Transition: Baker City’s Interim Manager Keeps Operations Afloat Amid Council Turmoil
By Joe Hathaway on Monday, October 2nd, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
BAKER CITY — Baker City Interim City Manager Jon France finds himself navigating uncharted territory.
The city council has been decimated, with currently no members until the Baker County commission fills the vacancies.
“This has been an incredible experience from the start of my interim city manager tenure,” says France. “Never would I have thought this series of events would have occurred to get to this point.”
France, who as interim city manager is essentially the city’s CEO, manages the day-to-day operations of the city.
He says despite the turmoil, the city is functional and day-to-day operations are being performed.
But France highlighted the urgency of the matter at hand. “We are starting to be handicapped with vacancies that have come open that I cannot fill as the Interim City Manager without council approval. Getting authority to hire will be very important when a city council can be seated as we are truly bare bones on staffing, especially in administrative duties.”
France’s contract with the city is set to conclude on December 28. He emphasized the critical need for a functioning city council before his departure to facilitate the selection of a permanent city manager. He says waiting for a special election, which could occur as late as early February, would leave the city unable to conduct essential business or meet financial obligations.
“The only solution for this is county commissioner intervention at this point,” said France
While grappling with this challenge, France continues to diligently conduct city business. Notably, he says progress has been made in the fire department, with staff being filled and with anticipated announcements of other positive developments in October. Additionally, he noted the recent repair of the wastewater pond liner marks a significant accomplishment. France mentioned that a few modifications to the liner are in the pipeline to enhance its resilience, and once completed, the city will schedule the refilling of the pond.
The Baker County Commission is set to meet Monday, October 2 to begin discussion of the process of filling the council vacancies.
